Continental Tire IMSA Spotlight: Trent Hindman

How anxious to get back in the car are you after the long layoff after Sebring?

“Very. Not sure if anxious is necessarily the word though, I think in this scenario it’s more of a motivation to go racing again following a difficult race weekend such as Sebring. Looking for redemption possibly?

“The time certainly passes quickly though, especially because we have been very busy at Bodymotion Racing preparing for next week’s Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge race at Circuit of The Americas.

“For us it is really just a matter of going out and proving to ourselves that no matter what adversity comes our way, we will still find a way to win.”

How much do you and your co-driver Cameron Cassels stay in contact during the time between races?

“It’s constant communication. Cam is a guy who is incredibly motivated to improve his craft behind the wheel of our Cayman GT4, or of course any car he drives for that matter, so we will always be comparing notes prior to arriving to the track.

“It’s definitely a very eye opening experience for me to be a part of his development as a driver because I too learn a lot about myself in the process. It’s a win-win for everybody.”

In your recent column for Sportscar365, you mentioned that you and Cameron were still new to the team at this time last year. How much has the year of chemistry that you have developed helped this year?

“Although at this point last year Cameron and I were new to working together alongside Bodymotion Racing, it’s pretty safe to say that we were all on the same page right away despite the inexperience.

“Chemistry when working with a group of people is not something that can be created artificially. Funny enough, I was already very close to everybody over at Bodymotion since the shop is roughly five minutes away from where I’ve lived all my life.

“For a while at the end of 2013 and all throughout 2014 while I was driving with Fall-Line in GS, I was the guy sweeping floors, mounting and dismounting tires, loading and unloading trailers, etc.

“Those experiences alone made this whole process of learning how to work together specifically with this team in a highly competitive environment much, much more straightforward and Cam really fit in well to that dynamic.”

You finished second at COTA last year. Does that set the bar for this year’s race?

“It does, but that is something we cannot focus on alone once we get on track next week.

“It’s great going into a race weekend knowing that you had success at that particular circuit in the past but for the most part it does not mean that the return will go as well as you expect sometimes; just look at Sebring for us between 2016 and 2017.

“Taking what we learned from last year and applying it once we get on track next week will prove to be advantageous, but we still have much to learn in order to stay ahead of both new and existing teams in the Continental Tire Challenge.”

What track that you haven’t driven before would you most like to get the chance to drive?

“Ah, tough question! I’ve been very fortunate to drive a lot of very, very special circuits over the last 3-4 years but I’ll still maintain that Watkins Glen is the greatest place ever. Period.

“There are certainly some tracks that are better than others, but I don’t think I have ever climbed out of the car and said to myself, ‘Wow this track is just terrible.’

“When it comes to a track that I would like to drive at some point, Nurburgring is at the top of the list for me since, well, it’s the Nurburgring. Came really close to running a few VLN races in 2015 but unfortunately that didn’t work out.

“Imola is another track that I hear is absolutely phenomenal and it definitely seems like it. Hoping to get there by the end of this year if all goes to plan!”